That was Donald Trump's bizarrely upbeat summation yesterday of the politically devastating war in Iran, just before the brutal verdict of US mid-term voters began rolling in.
asserted
verdict → roll → voters
"We seem to be getting everything we want," the president told the Financial Times, talking up the amount of oil now flowing through the Strait of Hormuz.
asserted
president → seem → Hormuz
American voters clearly see things differently.
asserted
voters → see → things
Fed up with what they're paying for that oil, and with another drawn out foreign entanglement, they've taken their anger out at the ballot box with a stinging rebuke across once reliably Republican states including Texas, Iowa and Kansas.
asserted
they → feed → Texas
The question now is what a weakened and famously unpredictable president does next.
asserted
president → do → what
Trump's immediate pledge to work with Democrats in Congress was a positive sign.
asserted
pledge → work → Congress
How long that may last is anyone's guess.
uncertain
last → last → ?
If this election was a repudiation of the war, how will Trump respond?
asserted
Trump → respond → war
The arguments inside his administration now matter even more.
asserted
arguments → matter → administration
Vice President JD Vance is seen to be in the de-escalation camp, preferring a negotiated settlement.
asserted
Vance → see → settlement
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is said to favour escalation and a more intense bombing campaign.
asserted
Hegseth → say → escalation
Trump's own description of the status quo as "brilliant" suggests there are no easy answers, and he may prefer to muddle along with things as they are.
uncertain
they → suggest → things
The voters have just made that considerably harder.
asserted
that → make → ?
Cost-of-living casualties
What Trump does next won't matter just in Washington.
asserted
does → matter → Washington
US allies, including Australia, are becoming increasingly outspoken about this war and its shock wave of inflation.
asserted
allies → include → inflation
The Albanese government initially supported the US strikes aimed at denying Iran a nuclear capability.
asserted
government → support → capability
It didn't anticipate the economic damage this would ultimately create.
asserted
this → anticipate → damage
Nor did it expect the conflict to drag on for 9 months and counting.
asserted
conflict → expect → months
Treasurer Jim Chalmers, with the authorisation of colleagues, has led the escalating rhetorical charge.
asserted
Chalmers → lead → charge
"If it was up to me, from an economic point of view, the war in the Middle East would end today," the treasurer told Radio National, "because Australians are the cost-of-living casualties of decisions taken in DC and Tehran."
asserted
Australians → end → DC
The risk for the treasurer is the louder he blames the US and Iran, the more he is seen to be passing the buck on his own responsibilities for inflation.
asserted
he → blame → inflation
As the Reserve Bank governor made clear, this week's interest rate hike, the fifth this year, was not due to the "direct impact of oil prices on inflation".
asserted
hike → make → inflation
Michele Bullock said this was about dealing with "domestic capacity pressures".
asserted
this → say → pressures
But the Reserve Bank is hardly pretending global oil price is playing no role here.
asserted
price → pretend → role
Either way, the government knows it must do more to tackle inflation.
asserted
it → know → inflation
It's promising spending cuts in what is now looming as a crucial mid-year budget update next month.
asserted
what → promise → update
If Labor is judged to be unserious about this challenge, when Bullock is warning the next 12 months will "feel like a recession", the government will be in even more political strife.
asserted
government → judge → strife
But this is not as straightforward as it might seem.
uncertain
it → seem → ?
The downturn in the housing market is proving sharper than was expected when the negative gearing and capital gains tax changes were announced in May.
uncertain
changes → prove → May
While lower house prices alone aren't seen as a problem, the impact on already soft consumer sentiment and spending is.
asserted
impact → see → sentiment
There's also a growing concern within the government about the jobs market deteriorating faster than was expected.
asserted
market → be → government
This nervousness about tipping an economy that already "feels like a recession" into an actual downturn explains the reluctance to commit to "net savings" in the budget update.
asserted
that → tip → update
The prime minister remains confident inflation and interest rates will come down in time for the 2028 election.
asserted
inflation → remain → election
A mid-year slash and burn to tame the inflation dragon is not on the cards.
asserted
slash → tame → cards
The government is left in an awkward situation.
asserted
government → leave → situation
Cut too hard and risk making a bad economic situation worse.
asserted
situation → cut → ?
Even the Reserve Bank governor acknowledges the uncertainty of the moment.
asserted
governor → acknowledge → moment
"We do our best with our forecasts," Bullock said after delivering this week's rate hike, "but they're uncertain, and things change, and who knows?"
asserted
who → say → hike
To all that economic uncertainty, Australia can now add another variable: a wounded Donald Trump.
asserted
Australia → add → variable
"Brilliant" is hardly a word the Albanese government would use to describe this outlook.
asserted
government → use → outlook
…and 1 more, not listed.
The Aporia
